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“A New Beginning”

So, I finally peeped out Obama’s long anticipated speech in Cairo, Egypt. While I’m sure this was just the fodder, right wingers need to feed their Obama/secret Muslim hysteria, I’m glad he did this. He is eloquently trying to fix the relationships that have been diasterously compromised by the antics of many of the previous administrations.

Check it out, if you have the time:

After watching his speech, I have a few quick thoughts:

– I have no idea how much Obama’s speechwriters make. But whatever it is, they are seriously underpaid. Those folks are fierce!

– I could not help but notice how the crowd went mute when Obama defended Israel. But truth be told, had I known that Israel would have been included in the speech, it would have been pretty easy for me to predict the silence. There is an ever increasing anti-Israeli sentiment moving through the Muslim world; largely because of Israel’s criminality complicity in conflicts with Palestine. Much of the Muslim world’s animus and aggression stems from the international community’s unfettering support for Israel.

– This idea was further supported when Obama cited the struggles of Palestinians. The positive reception was much more evident.

– Not particularly important, but the red, velvet background reminded me a bit of a fourth grade play.

– Speaking of pointless observations of color: I couldn’t get passed how gray the President’s hair was.

– My homegirl GDS made an interesting point in her after thoughts. Said GDS: “What bugs me though is that its supposed to be his address to the “Muslim World.” But the reality is that it’s really his address to the Middle East community more than anything else…” I agree.

– Perhaps I missed it, but I heard Obama make no direct references to President Bush.

– It was interesting to hear Obama refer to the war in Afghanistan as one of necessity, while the war in Iraq was one of choice. It’s nothingt that has not been said before, but I’m wondering if folks on the right will use the line as an indication that the Prez is criticizing U.S. foreign policy while on foreign soil.

– I can appreciate Obama taking the time to learn the Quran and many of the aspects of Islam (i.e. when he mentioned Jesus, Moses, and Muhammed…and followed by saying “Peace be upon them…”). But it does not take a genius to know that wingnuts on the right were salivating when they heard that.

– The President was strongest at the end when he focused on religious freedoms, women’s rights, and economic development in Muslim communities. But, the very last line had a pretty poor delivery by his standards. It was almost as if he didn’t know he was supposed to wrap it up. This was a pretty cosmetic issue, but it could say something about the authenticity of his speeches.

There are probably more sublties and nuances that I did not pick up on. But I plan to follow commentaries from political analysts to get their takes.

I think Obama spent way too much of his speech indulging Israel…and at the expense of Palestine, no less. It’s hard to lay out a solid plan for foreign policy (though I would argue that very little of Obama’s speech actually dealt with policy), without balancing the playing field being the Israelis and the Palestinians.

Just more fluff that has come to define the career of BHO. George Bush wasn’t nearly as good of a speaker (translation: teleprompter reader), but he was a decidedly convincing DOER! All Obama does is talk. Talk. Talk. And when he’s finished: more talking.